
            The film opens during the Carlist Wars on a foggy, dreary day in 19th century Spain. A group of soldiers has ambushed an enemy convoy carrying a large chest of gold and have taken prisoners - preparing to execute them on the spot by firing squad. When one of the prisoners fails to be killed like his compatriots, the soldiers are attacked by a unseen force. When the priest who gave the prisoners their last rites investigates the screams and commotion he sees the shadow of a pitchfork-wielding demon and is then slain by the surviving prisoner who then goes on to kill the commanding officer with a hammer.Eight years later, government agent Alfredo Ortiz visits a rural village and finds his way to the local inn. After introducing himself and renting a room from the innkeeper Santi, Alfredo questions the suspicious but curious patrons concerning the whereabouts of a local forge. Despite warnings that the forge is a ruin and that the blacksmith who resides there is evil, Alfredo intends to carry out his task of assessing the property and asks for directions.Making his way into the forest on the outskirts of the village, the agent comes to a massive gate outside the forge which is covered in metal spikes and crucifixes which bears a sign that reads "get out of here" above an animal's skull. The gate chained shut, Alfredo retreats back to town.Mass is underway at the local church and the priest Mateo addresses his flock and warns of the government agent's arrival. As he begins the prayer a woman noisily enters and sits in the pew in front of Santi, his wife, and his son Benito - turning around and questioning the latter as to the whereabouts of her daughter Usue (which Benito has no knowledge of).Elsewhere in the forest, Usue is having a picnic with her doll, a clump of mud she calls Bonaparte, and a small snake which has made its way onto the blanket. A rock narrowly misses her head and kills the snake - being thrown by Benito who has arrived with another boy. When Usue begins to yell at them for killing her "friend" the boys tease her about her dead mother who they insist is in Hell for committing suicide. A scuffle ensues and the children chase one another to the gates of the forge. Benito refuses to give Usue her doll back and when the girl punches him square in the face he rips the head off it and tosses it over the gate before the two boys run home.On their way back, the boys come across the blacksmith who appears to be foraging in the clearing where they originally found Usue. Deciding not to heed his friend's warnings of the rumors surrounding the smith and his penchant for kidnapping and eating children, Benito tries to hit him with rocks. When one strikes the smith, the boys run but Benito is struck in kind by a stone, falls to the ground, and is nearly captured before being released.When Benito and Usue return home they are chastised for their shenanigans and it's revealed that Mateo and the woman from the church are Usue's guardians.Back at the inn, Santi and his friends pore over a letter found in the agent's belongings which points towards the blacksmith being in possession of the lost chest of gold seen at the beginning of the film - revealing the agent's true reasons for being there. When Alfredo arrives and threatens to report their snooping to the government, he manages to convince three of them to accompany him back to the forge to confront the smith.Refusing to join them beyond the gate, the agent remains outside as the three armed men break the chain and hesitantly make their way to the forge - passing through fields of handmade metal crucifixes. When the smith refuses to open the door and allow them entry the men prepare to force their way in but one of the three accidentally steps backwards into a bear trap and misfires his rifle. The smith suddenly appears armed with a large metal shield, hammer, and metal mask and scares away two of the three men. Approaching the third still stuck in the bear trap, the smith releases his foot but the man scampers away in panic, trips, and falls head-first into another - killing him. Believing the smith to have killed their friend, the men rush back to the village to tell everyone what they had seen.Meanwhile, Usue fetches water from a nearby well and is teased by two girls who - just like Benito and his friend - claim that her mother is burning in Hell for hanging herself. After splashing water on them and striking one in the face, Usue rushes home and asks Mateo if it's true that her mother is being eternally punished for committing suicide - a belief the priest admits is true but his attempts to console the girl fail and Usue storms out - making her way back to the forge in an attempt to retrieve the head of her doll.When Usue witnesses the smith disposing the body of the man who fell in the bear-trap she hides and finds her way into his forge. Hearing what sounds like the whimpers of a child, Usue investigates to find a small boy locked inside a suspended metal cage. The boy pleads with her to retrieve the key from the blacksmith's belt and free him and after some hesitation she decides to help. Waiting until the smith has drunken himself to sleep, Usue steals the keys and frees the boy - following him as he picks up a pitch-fork and leers over the sleeping blacksmith, ready to strike.The boy suddenly transforms into a demon and the smith awakens - a struggle ensues and both the demon and Usue attempt to flee the forge. The demon is caught by another bear-trap while Usue twists her ankle and falls to the ground - knocking herself unconscious on a rock. The smith emerges from the forge and hits the demon with his hammer - breaking off one of his horns and subduing him. As the smith retrieves the girl an onlooking Benito witnesses the scene and runs back to the village - thinking that Usue has been killed.The demon back inside his cage, the smith tortures him with hot pokers and a crucifix. When the demon reminds the smith that he went back on their agreement and still owes him his soul in exchange for being able to survive the war and return to his wife, the smith dismisses it by saying that things didn't happen as he wanted (namely that his wife hung herself shortly after his return home).When Usue awakens back inside the forge, the smith enters the room and demands to know who she is and why she was there. Clearly frightened by the previous events, the smith realizes he needs to take a softer, kinder approach and does his best to fix up Usue's twisted ankle before leaving her to rest more. Usue, however; sneaks out of the room and finds the blacksmith and devil as he continues to torture and berate the hellspawn. Fascinated by the demon, Usue approaches and asks if he's the Devil - to which the smith explains that he's not THE Devil but rather a lesser demon called Sartael. When the girl asks Sartael if he's seen her mother in Hell, the demon teases her just as the other children did before the smith intervenes.The smith then shows Usue the various ways in which he tortures Sartael and lets the girl participate - ringing a small blessed bell that hurts the demon's ears and pouring a pot of chickpeas onto the ground which the smith explains relates to every demon's weakness to compulsively count every single one. After having their fun, the smith suggests the girl return home and offers to escort her back to the village.As this is occurring, the village people have begun to panic as first the men from earlier return claiming that the smith killed their friend and later Benito claims that he either has taken captive or has killed Usue. Alfredo authorizes the villagers to form an armed mob and storm the forge in order to bring the smith to justice by any means necessary. This mob, led by Alfredo, Santi, and Mateo meet the smith and Usue on the road just beyond the gates to the forge. Demanding that the smith release the girl, the mob attacks the him even after he complies and despite Usue's cries for them to stop.Alfredo instructs the mob to take the smith prisoner and bring him along as they still intend to find the chest of gold he supposedly has in his possession. At this point in the film several hints had been dropped that Usue is the smith's daughter and one of the villagers asks Mateo if the rumors about this are true. Mateo reveals that Usue is not the smith's daughter but she is the daughter of the smith's late wife. The priest recounts the story of how he came into possession of Usue...One night years ago the smith - whose name is Patxi - visited Mateo to deliver a new church bell but instead gave the priest a baby to look after. Patxi then explained to the priest what had happened upon his return home from the war. Escaping certain death, Patxi deserted the army and returned to the village after two years away from home to find his wife with a child that could not be his. Believing a rumor that Patxi had been killed, his wife had found comfort in the arms of another man and ended up having a child with him. Enraged, Patxi threatened to kill the baby by holding it over a fire (explaining Usue's burn scars on her face) but he chooses instead to take his anger out on the child's father - killing him. Overcome with grief, Patxi's wife (and Usue's mother) commits suicide by hanging. Leaving the baby with Mateo, Patxi returned to his forge and never ventured out again - becoming a mysterious recluse.Entering the forge the group comes upon the imprisoned Sartael and are frightened and amazed by the demon. Mateo expresses his desire to take Sartael to the Vatican in order to indisputably prove the existence of Hell - and by extension Heaven and God - as well as earn whatever accolades he may from single-handedly proving the beliefs of Christianity right.Alfredo - who surprisingly doesn't seem affected by Sartael's existence - shepherds Mateo and the others back outside to leave him and two men alone with Patxi in order to interrogate him about the chest of gold. At one point, Sartael attempts to make a deal with Alfredo to secure his release but the agent approaches and reveals himself to be a greater demon named Alastor in disguise.Alastor explains that he's there to claim Patxi's soul and berates the lesser demon for his ineptitude in doing it himself. He informs Sartael that their superiors in Hell plan to demote him for his incompetence and that someone will along eventually to collect him after Patxi is dealt with.As the men attempt to get the location of the gold out of an uncooperative Patxi, an impatient Alastor orders them to hang him until he dies. Usue, who has managed to sneak her way into the forge makes a deal with Sartael - his freedom in return for saving Patxi's life and finding her mother in Hell. Sartael tells her to ring the blessed bell to distract Alastor long enough for her to free him. When she does this, Alastor reels in pain and begins to reveal his demonic identity.Panicked by the sight, the two men release Patxi and one shoots Alastor before they flee - running headlong into Santi and the other villagers who've broken down the forge's door. Patxi's life saved, Sartael pleads with Usue to set him free and make good on their deal - when she does he flees, revealing his intention to not make good on his end of the bargain. Unfortunately for Sartael though, as he leaves the forge he falls into another bear-trap and seized upon by villagers who begin to beat him mercilessly.Mateo - who has re-entered the forge - strikes Usue for setting the demon free and curses her to Hell to join her mother. When Alastor recovers from his wounds, Usue approaches him and makes a deal: her soul in exchange for him taking her to her mother. Alastor agrees and transforms into his gigantic true demonic form and skewers the girl with his pitch-fork.When Patxi awakens he realizes what has happened and finds Sartael (still being beaten by the villagers). Patxi makes one final deal with the demon: he can finally have his soul but he must help save Usue's. Admitting that he did like the girl, Sartael agrees. Patxi prepares for the task by loading a cart with a giant church bell which turns out to be entirely made of gold - the same gold from the chest at the beginning of the film which the blacksmith had melted down. Giving the demon his pitch-fork back, Patxi allows Sartael to kill him.Patxi suddenly finds himself among a throng of frightened and distraught people who're being herded through the fiery gates of Hell by demons like Sartael on all sides. Despite the demons' commands to hurry and get inside, Patxi searches among the mass of souls for Usue who he finds hesitating at the entrance. As Alastor approaches, Usue empties a jar of chickpeas to distract him while Patxi uses the giant golden bell to subdue the massive demon and return Usue's soul to the world of the living.After Usue awakens - revived - Sartael suddenly appears and warns the villagers who've gathered around her to treat her like a saint lest he must return to terrorize them all. The demon than scampers away.As the film closes, Sartael runs through the woods and suddenly disguises himself as a young man - flagging down a passing cart for a ride. When the man driving the cart asks him what his story is, Sartael attempts to deflect the man's interest by telling him it's a long story. The man informs him that the next village is far away and a long story would be more than welcome.Meanwhile, back at the gates of Hell, Patxi uses the bell once more to force back open the doors and enters - intent on finding his wife.
    

Uma Bracaglia

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